Perspectives on the COVID-19 pandemic impact on cardio-oncology: results from the COVID-19 International Collaborative Network survey

Background Re-allocation of resources during the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in delays in care delivery to patients with cardiovascular disease and cancer. The ability of health care providers to provide optimal care in this setting has not been formally evaluated. Objectives To assess the impact of COVID-19 resource re-allocation on scheduling, testing, elective procedures, telemedicine access, use of new COVID-19 therapies, and providers’ opinions on healthcare policies among oncology and cardiology practitioners. Methods An electronic survey was conducted by a cardio-oncology collaborative network through regional and state chapters of the American College of Cardiology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the International Cardio-Oncology Society. Descriptive statistics were reported by frequency and proportion for analyses, and stratified categorically by geographic region and specialty. Results One thousand four hundred fifteen providers (43 countries) participated: 986 cardiologists, 306 oncologists, and 118 trainees/internal medicine. 63% (195/306) of oncologists vs 92% (896/976) of cardiologists reported cancellations of treatments/elective procedures (p = 0.01). 46% (442/970) of cardiologists and 25% (76/303) of oncologists modified the scope of their practice (p = \u3c 0.001). Academic physicians (74.5%) felt better supplied with personal protective equipment (PPE) vs non-academic (74.5% vs 67.2%; p = 0.018). Telemedicine was less common in Europe 81% (74/91), and Latin America 64% (101/158), than the United States, 88% (950/1097) (p = \u3c 0.001). 95% of all groups supported more active leadership from medical professional societies. Conclusions These results support initiatives to promote expanded coverage for telemedicine, increased access to PPE, better testing availability and involvement of medical professional societies to help with preparedness for future health care crisis

Heat transfer enhancement using nanofluids in the compression exchanger in a solar Stirling engine

In this paper a improvement in the heat exchange of a solar Stirling engine during the compression phase was studied. The viability of using nanoparticles as ceramic oxide (Al2O3 in water) at different concentrations instead of conventional refrigerants (water or air) was evaluated. Since these systems could behave as non- Newtonian fluids the dynamic viscosity was measured, as well as other thermophysical properties. The results showed that the convective heat transfer coefficient could raise one order of magnitude respect to the conventional heat transfer fluids at moderately volume fractions (over 0.15).Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

Characterization and thermophysical properties of rutile and alumina nanofluids

The characterization in relation to shape and particle size of alumina and rutile suspensions was performed. The intrinsic viscosity exhibited the presence of nonspherical aggregates in both suspensions although TEM images showed non monodisperse spherical shape of alumina particles. DLS indicated the existence of particle aggregates for both systems. In all cases, the increase in thermal conductivity with respect to the base fluid is verified. The thermal conductivities obtained experimentally were compared with three mathematical models, which yielded lower values than those measured. From rheological measurements and by means of the Peclet number defined in colloidal suspensions, values of thermal conductivity were also proposed.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

Rheological study of the aggregation state of alumina nanofluids

Se adjunta una comunicación, aunque se han publicado tres comunicaciones más.The presence of alumina solid particles in aqueous phase induces a change in the viscosity of the suspension from Newtonian to non- Newtonian flow. Besides, the presence of solid particles is adequate for the use as a heat exchanger fluid. The effect of nanoparticle size on thermal properties of nanofluids is still today a question, which is far from being answered. In this respect, the results reported in the literature are contradictory [1], probably due to the formation of aggregates when particles are dispersed in the liquid phase. Regarding to the nanoparticle shape influence in thermal conductivity, cylinders and spheres have been considered as the more effective in heat transfer. Spherical nanoparticles of alumina, which is one of the most investigated nanofluid, dispersed in water were used in this study. TEM images showed a mean average diameter of 50 nm. However, DLS measurements showed monodispersed particles of 260 nm. Very recently [2], the relationship between shear rheology and aggregation state of suspensions has been reviewed. Mechanical and physical properties of the resultant materials depend on shape, size and size distribution, which are considered determining parameters in the formation of particle aggregates. The steady shear flow (figure 1) has shown that these clusters, when they are at rest, are formed by highly branched aggregates that erode when shear rate increases, until a suspension of individual particles is achieved. These results are in good agreement with the intrinsic viscosity obtained by Money and Krieger-Dougherty models. In both cases, these values are far from the 2.5 corresponding to spherical particles. The temperature effects were also taken into account.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Neuregulin 1 gene (Nrg1). a potentially new targetable alteration for the treatment of lung cancer

Oncogenic gene fusions are hybrid genes that result from structural DNA rearrangements, leading to unregulated cell proliferation by different mechanisms in a wide variety of cancer. This has led to the development of directed therapies to antagonize a variety of mechanisms that lead to cell growth or proliferation. Multiple oncogene fusions are currently targeted in lung cancer treatment, such as those involving ALK, RET, NTRK and ROS1 among many others. Neuregulin (NRG) gene fusion has been described in the development of normal tissue as well as in a variety of diseases, such as schizophrenia, Hirschsprung’s disease, atrial fibrillation and, most recently, the development of various types of solid tumors, such as renal, gastric, pancreatic, breast, colorectal and, more recently, lung cancer. The mechanism for this is that the NRG1 chimeric ligand leads to aberrant activation of ERBB2 signaling via PI3K‐AKT and MAPK cellular cascades, leading to cell division and proliferation. Details regarding the incidence of these gene rearrangements are lacking. Limited case reports and case series have evaluated their clinicopathologic features and prognostic significance in the lung cancer population. Taking this into account, NRG1 could become a targetable alteration in selected patients. This review highlights how the knowledge of new molecular mechanisms of NRG1 fusion may help in gaining new insights into the molecular status of lung cancer patients and unveil a novel targetable molecular marker

Efficacy of sorafenib, a multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in an adenoid cystic carcinoma metastatic to the lung: case report and review of literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Treatment for squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck has significantly improved with the addition of cetuximab, a monoclonal antibody against the epidermal growth factor receptor, to conventional cytotoxic agents. The most significant aspect of this treatment approach is the proof that head and neck cancers are suitable for targeted therapies as has been shown in other malignancies. Unfortunately, there are other rare histologic types of head and neck cancer such as adenocarcinoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma. The latter has traditionally been considered to be chemotherapy resistant and surgical resection with or without adjuvant radiation therapy has been the rule as far as treatment is concerned. The course of adenoid cystic carcinoma ranges from indolent to aggressive; however, most patients succumb to the disease as a result of distant metastases. This clinical scenario poses a challenge to oncologists. Several conventional chemotherapy regimens and novel targeted agents have been tried in this rare histologic subtype without success.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>In this case report, we present a 59-year-old Caucasian female with refractory adenoid cystic carcinoma of the maxilla metastatic to the lung that responded to sorafenib, a novel multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, which targets angiogenesis, Raf kinase pathway, platelet-derived growth factor Ret, and c-Kit.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This case illustrates the possibility that this chemoresistant tumor may need the inhibition or blocking of several oncogenic pathways. Certainly, it is imperative that more studies are done in this special population trying to identify tumorigenesis mechanisms that may be upregulated in this malignancy and could be potential targets for therapeutic development.</p

The Role of Proteasome Inhibition in Nonsmall Cell Lung Cancer

Lung cancer therapy with current available chemotherapeutic agents is mainly palliative. For these and other reasons there is now a great interest to find targeted therapies that can be effective not only palliating lung cancer or decreasing treatment-related toxicity, but also giving hope to cure these patients. It is already well known that the ubiquitin-proteasome system like other cellular pathways is critical for the proliferation and survival of cancer cells; thus, proteosome inhibition has become a very attractive anticancer therapy. There are several phase I and phase II clinical trials now in non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer using this potential target. Most of the trials use bortezomib in combination with chemotherapeutic agents. This paper tends to make a state-of-the-art review based on the available literature regarding the use of bortezomib as a single agent or in combination with chemotherapy in patients with lung cancer

Metodología de optimización de la calidad de productos

In this study we have developed a method for optimizing the parameters of quality of products that consists of five steps: 1) Determine the characteristics of product quality and process variables 2) Develop an experimental design with Taguchi Methods 3) Develop experiments with Response Surface Methodology. 4) Determine a neural network that represents the relationships between variables and quality characteristics. Using fuzzy variables if there is information not deterministic. 5) Optimize with the use of genetic algorithms. In this proposal, artificial neural networks ANN allow to estimate response functions; in the case of having the qualitative variables these are processed with fuzzy logic LD and in the optimization step genetic algorithms GA are used. An example of optimization with multiple responses is presented to verify the method.En este estudio se ha desarrollado un método para optimizar los parámetros de calidad de productos que consta de cinco pasos: 1) Determinar las características de calidad del producto y las variables del proceso 2) Desarrollar un diseño experimental con Métodos Taguchi 3) Desarrollar los experimentos con Metodología de Superficie de Respuesta. 4) Determinar una red neuronal que represente las relaciones entre las variables y características de calidad. Usar variables difusas si se tiene información no determinística. 5) Optimizar con el uso de algoritmos genéticos. En esta propuesta, las redes neuronales artificiales RNA permiten estimar funciones de respuesta, en el caso de contar con variables cualitativas se las procesa con lógica difusa LD y en el paso de optimización se usan algoritmos genéticos AG. Se presenta un ejemplo de optimización con respuestas múltiples para comprobar el método

Medición de la atención en un call center usando box-jenkins

The article reviews the concepts of prediction and presents a new methodology, which uses the Box- Jenkins class, for prediction of demand for calls, which make customers call centers known as callcenter. The study concludes that the use of time series tools, works efficiently, which would be in improving the efficiency and competitiveness in the call center.El artículo revisa los conceptos de predicción y presenta una nueva metodología que utiliza la clase Box-Jenkins para la predicción de la demanda de llamadas, que efectúan los clientes a los centros de llamadas más conocidos como call-center. El estudio concluye que el empleo de herramientas de serie de tiempos funciona de manera eficiente, lo que ha de redundar en la mejora de la eficiencia y competitividad en los call-center

Aplicación de la metodología GARCH al precio de cierre en la Bolsa de Valores de Lima

The article presents a methodology that uses the time series, for forecasting indices closing prices, which made the stock market centers. The behavior response to a current generated on the expectation value of change in the preceding moment, ie an expected value conditioned by the variance of previous period. The GARCH model is the key part of the investigation. It presents a clear and detailed each of the activities undertaken to quantify market risk. ARIMA methodology is applied to predict the yields of the series, which generally have a variance is not constant over time, ie the existence of heteroscedasticity present and should be used generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity, for the company under study.El artículo presenta una metodología que utiliza la serie de tiempos, para la predicción de los índices de los precios de cierre, que efectúan los centros de mercados bursátiles.El comportamiento actual responde a una expectativa generada sobre el valor de cambio producido en el momento precedente; es decir, a un valor esperado condicionado por la varianza del período anterior. El modelo GARCH es la parte fundamental de la investigación. Presenta de manera clara y detallada cada una de las actividades realizadas para la cuantificación del riesgo de mercado. Se aplica la metodología ARIMA para pronosticar los Rendimientos de la serie, que generalmente tienen una varianza no constante en el tiempo; es decir, presentan la existencia de heterocedasticidad y deben utilizarse los modelos autorregresivos generalizados de heterocedasticidad condicional, para la empresa en estudio